HIS first introduced its IceQ coolers in 2003 to its Radeon 9800PRO series of video cards, eight years later HIS return with the IceQ X cooler, which thankfully performs much better than it looks. In this review the IceQ X cooler is strapped onto a HIS HD6870 Turbo X video card which comes factory overclocked at 975MHz GPU and 1150MHz Memory. Pushing clocks this far on a factory overclocked video card takes some guts, but HIS know that they have nothing to worry about, their IceQ cooler is up to the job. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the HIS HD6870 IceQ X Turbo X and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today.

Now that Intel's finally released the Z68 chipset, motherboard vendors are scrambling to meet the demand. With the odd restrictions of the P67 and H67 chipsets removed, the Z68 allows users to make use of Sandy Bridge integrated graphics as well as overclock their processors. Add Lucid's Virtu software for intelligent switching between the integrated GPU and a video card and Intel's Smart Response Technology for using an SSD as an intelligent cache for your main hard disk, and the features and advantages of a Z68 motherboard become very attractive. Benchmark Reviews looks at MSI's Z68A-GD80 motherboard in this review. MSI builds it with "military class" components, but does this make any real-world difference? Let's find out.

The long-awaited 990FX Chipset is finally here. The manufacturing partners have put together their offerings, each putting their personal touches to the design. Benchmark reviews is here with a look at the ASUS Crosshair V Formula 990FX motherboard and the all new 990FX Chipset. It's been a long time coming, and a full six months after the Intel P67-Express chipset means that AMD is behind the curve. A lot is expected of the new chipset and ASUS has a name to keep up with the Republic of Gamers series name.

While high-end motherboards, video cars, and SSDs are exciting to test and read about, we sometimes overlook the more prosaic products that we actually use day-to-day. A laptop sleeve doesn't have the geek appeal of a Z68 motherboard or fancy new CPU, but if you're going to carry your laptop around with you, you're going to need a sleeve or case of some sort. There are dozens of companies marketing laptop cases and sleeves, but LEVEL 8 Products thinks they've got a standout product with their MacBook Air sleeves, and Benchmark Reviews takes a little time off from slaving over a hot CPU to see how this product works.

Not so long ago, Benchmark Reviews tested the OCZ Vertex 3 SSD, which delivered the best transfer speeds and operational performance we had seen from any SATA-connected drive. Not to be outdone, the OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS Edition solid state drive debuts with the same SandForce SF-2281 controller but switches to Toshiba TH58TAG7D2FBAS9 3nnm toggle NAND flash components. OCZ suggests up to 120,000 combined IOPS are possible, with speeds reading 550 MB/s. In this article, Benchmark Reviews compares the OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS Edition SSD to other high-speed SATA 6Gb/s storage devices.

It comes as no surprise that Thermaltake is now breaking into the audio market following the successes of its competitors. Their new Tt eSports Shock One Gaming Headset distinguishes itself with flashy design and integrated DTS Surround Sensation, contrasting to the more common Dolby Headphone technology. The performance of the Shock One is important to both Thermaltake and DTS as they challenge a market filled with competition. Benchmark Reviews will be pitting the new comer against other Dolby headsets like the Corsair HS1 and Logitech G930. One thing's for sure, while many other companies chose a relatively neutral design that suits a wider audience range, the Shock One has been built from the ground up for gamers.

AMD changed the game with its 6000 series of GPU's but at the same time it confused a lot of people with its numbering system. To cut a long story short, a HD58XX is equivalent to a HD69XX and not a HD68XX, a common misconception for the less informed enthusiast. The MSI R6950 Twin Frozr III Power Edition OC video card is the current card on the bench so to speak, and as you can tell from the name this offering from MSI carries its top end Twin Frozr III cooler equipped with twin propeller blade fans. The power edition in its name relates towards the support for triple over-voltage and a 6+2 Phase VRM, and I'm sure you can guess what the OC stands for. Unfortunately there is only so much overclocking an AIB partner can do with a HD6950 without it running into HD6970 performance territory, so the overclock on this card is not very aggressive. Add to that factor the unlocking potential of the 6950 series, one has to be careful not to back bench one SKU to sell another. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the MSI R6950 Twin Frozr III PE/OC and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today.

It's a predictable progression: NVIDIA or AMD release a new GPU, along with a "reference design" video card built around it. All of the marketing partners introduce new video cards that are the reference design card with a vendor label or graphic affixed to it. And while some vendors leave it at that, others aim for the enthusiast market by designing their own video cards around the new GPUs, adding their own features and capabilities. PowerColor is one of the latter, and they have several variants of the AMD Radeon HD6950 video card ranging from plain reference designs to, well, this one: the PowerColor PCS+ Radeon HD6950 Vortex II Edition. It's a mouthful of a product name, to be sure, and Benchmark Reviews puts it to the test in this review.